I was over on TV By The Numbers and I was voting in their ‘which shows would save?’ poll and I noticed that I had selected two from each network. An accidental list of the 10 network shows I like most right now. And here it is!
Do you agree?
Review of: A To Z, Arrow, Brooklyn Nine Nine, Chicago PD, Forever, Gotham, Once Upon A Time, The Big Bang Theory, The Flash, The Good Wife
Robin Hood. Good performances, but the script makes one think the show is out of ideas at this stage, and running on fumes. 6/10
Review of: Once Upon A Time
Sonequa Martin-Green. The Pinocchio story arc is one of the darkest and most interesting on the show, and it appears to reach a conclusion here. Quite a surprising conclusion, at that. The rest of the episode is taken up with a hopelessly convoluted sequence of events that are (I presume) going to threaten everyone in Storybrooke. OUAT seems to be a show that has completely run out of steam, in many ways, and storylines like this one seems desperate. As if the writers really only had enough story for one season and everything else is being made up as they go along. Luckily, the cast tend to be excellent and many episodes are driven by very real emotions. The regrets of August and Snow being the best thing about this week’s chapter, and their journey’s towards some form or redemption. That worked splendidly. Many other things did not. The ending (where various character’s showed up on the street at the right time) was lazy and disappointing. 8/10
Review of: Eion Bailey, Once Upon A Time, Sonequa Martin Green
John Pyper-Ferguson. Strong start to new story arc. Intriguing. Love the flashbacks to Storybrooke 1983. Hilarious, insightful. 9/10
Review of: Once Upon A Time
Rose McGowan. Great performances from everyone as we get the Cora backstory and the end of the Cora story arc.
As usual, the show delves into the characters and their motivations, and this episode makes us genuinely feel for Cora, Rumplestiltskin, Regina and Mary Margaret. Quite an accomplishment: to make us empathise so much for the ‘baddies’.
It’s all about love, really. No surprise then that the best scene is probably the one where Belle gets a phone call with an outpouring of love for her. 9/10
Review of: Barbara Hershey, Lana Parrilla, Once Upon A Time, Robert Carlyle, Rose McGowan
Bailee Madison, Rena Sofer, Lesley Nicol. Exciting episode, revealing lots of BTS backstory, flawed by having Snow make another dumb decision at the end. Involving saving a character the audience has never met before and is not invested in. 8/10
Review of: Keegan Connor Tracy, Once Upon A Time
Ethan Embry. A dis-jointed episode. Lots happens, and ALL of it was good. But… the show is a little unfocused and all over the place sometimes. Which, even in a good episode, can be a bit frustrating.
But there was much to love: (1) The idea of the core characters working together to protect the town from an outside threat. (2) The comedy. (3) Every time Robert Carlyle was on screen. (4) The brisk pace. Story developments abound. No padding, or procrastinating, in Storybrooke!! (5) Every time Barbara Hershey was on screen. 9/10
Review of: David Anders, Ginnifer Goodwin, Jennifer Morrison, Josh Dallas, Meghan Ory, Once Upon A Time
Yaoguai. Cool to see Belle cast as an intelligent action heroine. Of course, this is a show populated by interesting, heroic and intelligent female characters (who even like each other! Gasp) But Belle has never quite made the same impact upon the viewer. Until now. This is her best episode so far, and the ending is a shocker. Can’t wait to see what happens next. 8/10
Review of: Once Upon A Time
Murder! Lana Parrilla is the best actress on TV. Script is heartbreaking and clever. With characters who are clever and have layers. Wonderful. And the twist at the very end… 10/10
Review of: Lana Parrilla, Once Upon A Time
What a fantastic ending to the story arc! Clever and action-packed. Cora, Emma, Hook and Regina are so well written here, with many scenes of character self-doubt and inner conflict. But Lana Parrilla steals the show. A truly talented actress. 10/10
Review of: Ginnifer Goodwin, Jamie Chung, Jennifer Morrison, Lana Parrilla, Once Upon A Time
No flashback = lots and lots of story advancement. And former foes uniting. Everywhere. And a clever twist, too. 10/10
Review of: Once Upon A Time
Wolf. Meghan Ory gives a wonderful performance in a script with many beautiful moments about friendship and the joys/pains of being true to one’s self. Beautiful. The fact that some of these conversations were between women (rare on TV) makes it all the sweeter. 10/10
Review of: Once Upon A Time
